CPS students show gains on ACT, Prairie State Achievement Exam

But achievement gap widens among whites, African-Americans and Hispanics

August 22, 2012|By Joel Hood, Chicago Tribune reporter

Chicago public high school juniors showed improvement on key standardized tests in 2012, according to data released Tuesday by Chicago Public Schools.

The data showed gains on both the Prairie State Achievement Examination and the ACT, and for the percentage of students who met college readiness benchmarks, a point of emphasis for district leadership and Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

Data show that 8.9 percent of CPS juniors were considered prepared for college freshman classes in English, math, reading and science. That's 1 percentage point higher than in 2011. But 53.4 percent of those CPS juniors didn't attain college-ready scores in even one subject, the data shows. That's a 5.1 percentage point improvement over the previous year.

CPS' composite score on the college-entrance ACT, which comprises half of the PSAE given to high school juniors, was up to 17.6 in 2012 from 17.2 the year before.

That score also is 1.3 percentage points higher than it was a decade ago.

Students scored higher in math, English and science from a year ago on the ACT, but their performance dipped slightly in reading.

On the PSAE, students posted gains in math, reading and science, and the composite scores for those who met or exceeded state standards was up 2.7 percent, to 31 percent.

In a statement released late Tuesday by CPS, Emanuel credited a team effort for the higher test scores.

"These gains are a result of the hard work our students are doing every day in the classroom, with the support of great teachers, dedicated principals, their families and communities," Emanuel said. "We must build on this great news by ensuring that every student is able to start school on time with a full school day so they can realize their full potential."

One troubling trend that continued was a widening of the achievement gap among white, Hispanic and African-American students. The percentage of white students who met or exceeded standards on the PSAE was 44.6 points higher than African-Americans and 32.2 points higher then Hispanics. Both gaps grew slightly in 2012.

The composite score "on the ACT and 2.7 (increase in meet or exceed standards) on the PSAE is very nice, but we have work to do," said CPS chiefJean-Claude Brizard. "It's a pause for a celebration, but it has to be a moment. We have to get back to closing the achievement gap and getting kids ready for college."

Brizard said it is hoped the longer school day instituted districtwide this year, if used well by principals in scheduling time for core subjects, will result in better test scores next year.

The data showed that students at the city's neighborhood schools performed slightly better than charters on the composite PSAE. But if the district's high-performing selective enrollment high schools are excluded from neighborhood schools, charters fared slightly better.

Charters and noncharters improved at about the same rate on ACT testing.